DIY Life

It happens in every home. Some time or another someone is going to hit a wall with something that is harder than the drywall and the drywall is going to lose the battle.

When that happens you have two choices. You can either hang a picture over the damaged spot where it will remain to snicker at you every time you walk by or you can fix the damage and sleep better at night. I suggest that you fix the hole.

Begin by assessing the damage. Do you have a wall injury that is just a tear through the outer layer of the drywall facing paper or is the drywall fractured on both the inner and outer faces? Even worse, did you actually punch a hole all the way through?


Sometimes there's more damage to the drywall than you can actually see just by looking at the wall. Get right up to the damaged spot to press, tap, push and pull until you are certain of the condition of your wall. Don't be afraid to even use a small hammer to rap on that drywall until you're certain about what's solid and what's not.

Once you know the true condition of the drywall, then you'll know how to proceed. If your damaged spot is simply a surface injury on the outer face, you can use light weight joint compound to fill and dress the spot. After the joint compound cures until thoroughly dry, a bit of light sanding, a touch of paint and you're good to go. Beware though that many room painting jobs have begun with a needed small drywall repair.

If your wall injury is more serious and you can tell that the drywall is damaged all the way through to the backing paper, you'll need to decide if the injured spot will be sturdy enough after being repaired with only a coating of joint compound. That is a matter of judgment between the individual and their wall. Push on the damaged spot with the kind of force it would take to push a person off balance. If your fractured spot can withstand that kind of force, you can probably get away with a coat of joint compound. If the fractured area is too weak, you'll probably end up with your hand inside the wall.

For those major fractures and holes, you'll need to do some material removal before you can proceed with repair. The best practice is to cut away all the damaged drywall outwards to the closest stud on each side. A keyhole saw works nicely for cutting side to side between the studs, then use a utility knife with a sharp blade to cut the drywall vertically along the centerline of each stud. Cut all the way through the backing paper and make your cuts as straight and square as practical. It can help to make some pencil line marks before you begin cutting.

Once you have cut away the damage, you'll need replacement material. Before you go and buy a 4' x 8' or 4' x 4' sheet of drywall at you local building center, consider asking some friends, neighbors or coworkers if they have any scrap drywall. Remember a year ago when that guy in the copy room said he built a closet in his home office? Chances are that he still has drywall scraps hanging around! You can also try calling local carpenters or handymen to see if they might have scraps on hand. If all else fails, shop around by phone to find your best drywall size options before going out to buy some.

Putting the properly sized replacement piece of drywall into your prepared opening is a simple matter. You will use either ribbed drywall nails or drywall screws to hold the piece in place. Screws are the preferred option because they are faster and generally more secure. Be sure to use enough screws to get the job done securely.

Next you will tape the joint surrounding your repair. The two kinds of joint tape are paper and fiberglass mesh. I myself completely ignore paper drywall tape because the mesh tape seems easier for me to use and results in a stronger repair. The reason to tape the joint is because home materials are constantly affected by changes in humidity and temperature. By placing tape in the joint, you effectively "bridge" the seam and prevent the repair from cracking as your home materials make their slight adjustments.

After taping, you may begin applying your joint compound. Start by using your drywall knife (a very wide putty knife) to force joint compound into any crevices on your repair seam. Then, apply a very thin layer of compound over the entire repair and feather it out at least a good ten inches beyond the repaired area in all directions and allow this first coat to fully dry. After the first coat is cured, you may then put a finish coat over the entire repaired area making sure to feather out over a wide area, this technique will prevent your repair from appearing to be a hump on the wall.

When your second coat of joint compound is completely cured you may then lightly sand the area in preparation for paint. A trick my father taught me is to use a moderately wet sponge to do the sanding rather than using sand paper. The water in the sponge reactivates a very thin layer of the joint compound and actually allows you to move that reactivated compound around a little bit. While the sponge method is not as fast as sanding, it is far less mess and allows you to feather out your repair quite nicely. I myself have never used sandpaper on joint compound, even on a couple whole house drywall jobs.

There now, you have a drywall repair which is ready to texture and paint. Texturing can be tricky so be sure to do some research before you tackle that job if it's a detail you wish to address. For some more first rate instruction on getting professional drywall repair results, as well as descriptions of the tools and techniques you may need, use this handy link to do some more in depth research. You'll be repairing drywall like the professionals in no time!